The last four years since I left Apple’s sales team have been interesting.
I have worked for a couple of other technology related companies.
One was full of youngsters who were determined to learn everything the hard way.
I have also done technology consulting, writing, photography, and I am now a Realtor® on the Southern Outer Banks of North Carolina.
I ended up in real estate mostly because you can work a lot on your own, and there are plenty of older people already working in real estate. Still now is not an easy time to be in real estate.
I find myself at 58 years old more skilled than ever. I feel more knowledgeable than at any time in the past. I know more about technology than when I worked at Apple. I have learned Linux and Windows along with ultra high speed networking for research labs. I also sold email services.
With real estate, I went back to the classroom, and now I understand settlement statements and a host of other things.
I have written an article for pay for the Guardian newspaper in London. I have consulted on a couple of articles for the WSJ. I have even written well over 1,500 posts on the Internet.
I have sold prints as far away as Texas. My travel guides for Emerald Isle, Swansboro, and Beaufort, NC, all towns along the Southern Outer Banks, are highly ranked in Google search.
My websites get very good reviews, and in the last month four potential buyers from out of state have shown up to look at property. In today’s real estate market that is a near miracle.
The websites I create for my listings have everything from podcasts to movies. I have listed property and sold property.
The other day, I had some customers ready to give up on our area. I completely turned them around in a few minutes.
A lot of years in the trenches has taught me leadership and of necessity sales.
I think that I am pretty close to the top of my game, but in our world which increasingly values youth over experience, I find myself wondering why it is so hard to find a place to be really successful. You would think up and coming companies would want to suck my brain and those of others like me dry before they put us out to pasture.
Yet I have learned from experience that most companies would rather learn the hard way than listen to the experiences of others.
It is almost like we have created a class of individuals who are so sure they are right, that the only way they can learn is when they really screw up.
It is a hard way to do business, but it is becoming the American way as much of the talent and business knowledge retires. It is especially difficult for good customers.
Few companies have cultivated a strong relationship with more experienced employees. In high tech companies have been pushing older employees out the doors for years and replacing them with less expensive young employees who get no knowledge transfer from the older employees. The best new employees are sometimes the ones who can put on the best appearance of pretending to know what they are doing.
It seems to be the new mantra is don’t worry about not knowing how to do your job. We have plenty of customers for you to practice on over the next few years while you are figuring it out. It might be a way to save some dollars in the short term, but it is a foolish way to keep your business humming.
I guess it is good thing I have little at stake in these businesses. I can stick to my own business.
And in that there is always the satisfaction of mastering my new field and doing my job really well.
Our technological infirmity 